Car-door.



110.7%,178. PATENTED MAR. 28, 1905.

. N. F. ARBLE.

GAR DOOR. APPLICATION FILED MAY 25, 1904.

F 2 SHEETS-SHBT 1.

UNITED STATES Patented March 28. 1905.

NEWTON F. ARBLE, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

CAR-DOOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 786,178, dated March28, 1905.

Application filed May 25, 1904. Serial No. 209,809.

To all whom it Wtay concern:

Be it known that I, NEWTON F. ARBLE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inCar-Doors, of which the following is a specification, reference beinghad therein to the accompanying drawings, forming part of thisspecification, in which Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of a carprovided with my improved door, showing the door closed. Fig. 2 is avertical section on the line II II of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a horizontalsection on the line III III of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a similar view on theline IV IV of Fig. 5. Fig. 5 shows the door open.- Fig. 6 is a verticalsection on the line -VI VI of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a face view of thesliding hinge.- joint. Fig. 8 is an end view of the sheave-bracket ofthe hinge. Fig. 9 is a plan view of the sheavebracket and part of theslide-rail. Fig. 10 is an edge view of the hinge-shank keeper. Fig. 11is a detail view of the hinge-shank. Fig. 12 shows different views ofthe top sheavebracket. Fig. 13 shows different views of the locking-armkeeper. Fig. 14: is an edge view of the locking-arm. Fig. 15 is a viewassembled, partly broken away, of the locking-arm, its connected shaft,and the shaftbearings and end socket. Fig. 16 shows inner views of theshaft-bearings. Fig. 17 is an end View of the end socket for the shaft.Fig. 18 is an enlarged vertical sectional View on the line XVIII XVIIIof Fig. 1, showing the locking-arm and door-shaft raised away from thekeeper.. Fig. 19 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view on the lineXIX XIX of Fig. 1 through the sliding hinge-joint. Fig. 20 is a similarview showing the door raised away from the car for ventilation orpreparatory to being opened.

My invention refers to improvements in doors for freight-cars; and ithas for its objects to provide a door which is capable of being firmlysecured in place either tightly or with suflicient clearance forventilation, insuring against displacement or breakage from the car,providing for ease of operation and-prevention of jamming due to saggingof the door, together with various other advantages incldent to itsconstruction and mode of operation, as shall be more fully herein- Iafter set forth.

Referring to the drawings, 2 is the body of the car, provided with theusual door-opening 3 and provided at the top, above the opening, with adoor-rail 4, upon which the door is hung at its upper portion. A similardoor-rail 5 is secured upon the face of the car about half way down andto one side of the opening, both rails projecting out beyond the car inthe usual manner and mounted upon securing studs or bolts. The upperrail 4 is inclined, as shown, leadinginwardly toward the car at thefront end@'. 0 the end toward which the door travels in closing. Theobject of this construction is to lead the door inwardly to a seat bythe guiding-wheel bracket 6, secured to the top of the car and embracingthe rail 4 by means of flanges 7 7 above and below. A wheel 8 isrotatably mounted in the bracket and bears on the rail to support theweight of the door, while the flanges 7 securely prevent the door fromleaving the rail at any point. A similar sliding rail-bracket 9,provided with a wheel 8 and flanges 7, engages the lower rail 5 in thesame manner. the flanges 7 effectually holding the bracket intoengagement with the rail at all points of its length. This bracket isprovided with a hinge-lug 10, having a bolt-opening 11, with an interiorspline or key-cavity 12 located at one side to admit of insertion of thehingebolt when in register. The hinge-bolt 13 is provided with a lug 1 1at its lower end adapted to register with said slot in one position andto prevent disengagement with the hingelug when turned round tooperative position. The bolt 13 is connected by an integral crossarm 15with an elongated hinge-pintle 16,

provided with bearing-flanges 17, mounted within the keeper 18, securedupon the door at its back edge, as shown.

The keeper is preferably made of two pieces, comprising an inner plate19 and the outer cylindrical part 20, between which the pintle isembraced when secured in place by proper holding-bolts, as shown, alateral clearanceslot for arm 15 being provided, as shown.

When thus mounted, as in Figs. 1 and 7, it will be seen that the doormay be thrown outwardly bodily from the face of the car, swinging outupon the upper bracket-bearing 6 a distance limited by the length of thearm 15, as shown in Fig. 20. It will be understood that suflicientclearance is provided in bracket 6 around the rail t to admit of suchmovement, which thus opens the back edge of the door, leaving a verticalspace corresponding to the throw of arm 15. This movement is necessaryin first opening the door, releasing it from the jamb, so that it may beslid back, and is also of advantage in providing ventilation whendesirable, as with shipments of fruit or other perishable goods.

For the purpose of locking the door securely in position I employ a rod21, mounted in keepers 22, having interior annular recesses 23 forcorresponding collars 24 on the shaft, thus allowing of rotation, butpreventing end movement of the shaft. The front end of shaft 21 entersan interiorly-tapered socket 25, secured upon the side of the car,provided with an extended staple 26, adapted to be engaged by a hasp 27of usual construction, secured at the other end to eye 28 of one of therod-keepers 22. This hasp is provided with an extra staple-opening 27,so that when the door is slightly opened to admit ventilation saidopening may be used to engage the staple 26 instead of the first openingof this hasp, as ordinarily used with the door closed, as shown. In suchuse the hasp 27 is sealed, as the other hasps will not be in engagement.By this means the door is locked or sealed against opening. At the otherend the rod 21 is provided with a locking and manipulating lever 29,secured on the end of shaft 21 in any suitable way, as by squaring theshaft, the end of said lever being hooked, as shown at 30. Areceivingsocket 31 is set into a countersunk recess in the face of thecar, having a cavity 32 and a cross-bridge 33, adapted to receive andretain the hook 30, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 18, when thedoor is forced back into closed position. The lever 29 has a pivotedextension-arm 34, provided with a terminal staple 35 and adapted toswing laterally to locking or sealing position, as shown in Fig. l, orto be straightened out, as in Figs. 14, 15, and 18, to constitute anextended operatingarm of greater leverage. By this construction uponengaging the bridge 33 by the hooked terminal 30 considerable pressuremay be exerted inwardly upon the door to clamp it firmly down inposition, and when the arm 34: is then deflected, as in Fig. 1, andlocked the 1 and 5 and maintaining a positive holding engagement withsaid tracks at all times. By reason of these tracks being located atdifferent heights and in different vertical planes the door ispositively held in all positions. It cannot swing outwardly or becomeloosened, and thus avoids accidents frequently due to swinging or loosedoors.

It will be observed that by reason of the location of the slidingbrackets, they being diagonally arranged, the door is capable ofadjusting itself to any saggingof the car, and it is thereforeimpossible to cause binding from such sources. When the door is closed,it is run in on inclined track4 and fits in flush with the outer surfaceof the car and is forced in tightly by the rod entering tapered socket25 and the lever 29 at the other end. Thus an absolutely tight joint ismade and maintained, so that cars equipped with my improved doors can beused for transporting grain, ore, and other granular material. It willbe observed that I avoid the necessity .of a bottom track of any kind,thereby permitting the cutting otf of the lower edge of the door at anytime necessary to insure fitting.

The advantage of my invention will be appreciated by all those familiarwith this class of devices. It is very eflicient and strong, simple inconstruction, durable, and not liable to get out of order. Changes andVariations may be made in the various details of construction by theskilled mechanic; but all such changes are to be considered as withinthe scope of the following claim.

\Vhat I claim is-- The combination with a car provided with a recessedsocket having a retaining-bridge at one side of the door-opening, and atapered socket at the other side thereof; of a shaft carried by the doorand having one of its ends fitting in the socket when the door isclosed; and a hooked lever on the opposite end of the shaft to engageunder the retaining-bridge.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

NEWTON F. ARBLE.

WVitnesses:

JAs. J. MGAFEE, O. M. CLARKE.

